Duplication of Fingers

Abstract

Duplication of fingers or polydactyly may occur on the preaxial (radial) or postaxial (ulnar) side; central polydactyly is rare. The proximal extent of duplication varies a great deal; attempts have been made to classify the patterns of duplication comprehensively (Blauth and Olason 1988; Wassel 1969). Polydactyly may be associated with other anomalies of the hand, the commonest of which is syndactyly (polysyndactyly). Children with polydactyly of the hands may have comparable patterns of polydactyly of the feet also (Miura et al. 1987). It is also important to recognize that polydactyly may just be part of a more generalized malformation of the limb and in some instances part of a genetically distinct syndrome with multisystem involvement (Schwabe and Mundlos 2004).